A typical EAS system in a retail setting may comprise a monitoring system and at least one security tag or label attached to an article to be protected from unauthorized removal. The monitoring system establishes a surveillance zone in which the presence of security tags and/or labels can be detected. The surveillance zone is usually established at an access point for the controlled area (e.g., adjacent to a retail store entrance and/or exit). If an article enters the surveillance zone with an active security tag and/or label, then an alarm may be triggered to indicate possible unauthorized removal thereof from the controlled area. In contrast, if an article is authorized for removal from the controlled area, then the security tag and/or label thereof can be deactivated and/or detached therefrom. Consequently, the article can be carried through the surveillance zone without being detected by the monitoring system and/or without triggering the alarm.
The process of detaching a security tag/label from an article requires an external physical detachment device. In a retail setting, these types of detachment devices are only used by authorized store personnel. There are currently no security tags available in the market which can be detached from articles using only wireless communication. There is also no process available in the retail industry which allows a customer to purchase an item and then also detach a security tag without using a traditional fixed Point Of Sale (“POS”) station (e.g., a retail checkout counter).